NEWARK, Del. — All six Jr. Blue Hens teams saw action this weekend, and improvement was apparent across the entire program. Recaps of each team’s schedule follow.
U10s split weekend set
The Jr. Blue Hens’ youngest full-ice team split their weekend set, edging Princeton, 3-0, in a Saturday (Oct. 15) EJEPL game before falling 4-0 to Pottstown on Sunday (Oct. 16), both at Gold Arena.
Backstopped by an 11-save shutout from Noah LeCompte, the Blue Hens asserted in the second period, with goals from Ryan McCoury, Jack Gelb and Cash Scarborough — the latter of whom also recorded an assist — in their EJEPL victory over the Tigers. Sunday was a different story, though, as the Hens were shut out by Pottstown. Evan Heffernan was the Penguins’ driving force, registering two goals and an assist. LeCompte saved 12 of 16 total shots faced for Delaware.
U12s tested, fall just short twice
The JBH U12AA team dropped both of their Friday (Oct. 14) EJEPL showcase games at Hatfield Ice, in Colmar, Pa. They fell, 3-1, to Arrows Hockey, giving up three goals early in the second period before Nate Babb cut into the Arrows’ lead with Delaware’s lone goal. The Hens put together a more concerted attack against the Loudoun Knights in the evening game, but still dropped a 4-3 decision. Brenden Albert, Jaxon MacKenzie and Alex Over scored for the Hens.
In Saturday morning action, the Blue Hens lost to DVHL rival Snider in overtime when Chimaobim Odenigbo scored 1:02 in overtime to seal a 5-4 win for the Philadelphia-based club. Hudson Kurtz led the Hens with two goals. Shea Broadbent scored the lone Delaware goal in the final game of the weekend, an 11-1 defeat to a potent Tri-City Eagles squad.
U14As respectable in defeat to Genesis, shut out by Snider
The JBH U14A team turned in a respectable team effort in a 3-1 DVHL loss to Genesis Saturday. After Genesis centres Ryan Aldrich and Theodore Giannone established a 2-0 lead for their side early in the second period, Kaiden McCoury scored the lone Hens’ goal 4:07 into the second period, connecting off a stretch pass from Wyatt Bolin that originated in the Delaware zone. Mack Risnychok elevated the Genesis lead back to two with 3:36 to go in the second before both sides battled through a scoreless third period.
Ryne Dominick stopped 21 of 24 shots faced in defeat for Delaware.
On Sunday, the Hens dropped a 9-0 decision to Snider, and were outshot 36-13. Four Snider skaters registered multiple points — led by Evan Steiner’s two goals and two assists — while Quinn Kelley made 27 saves in defeat.
U14AAs swept in Aston
Delaware’s U14AA team went 0-4-0 in EJEPL play at IceWorks, in Aston, Pa., but the weekend was not without its bright points.
Enrique Boyd led the Blue Hens with three goals — two in a 7-5 loss to DVHL rival Central Penn on Saturday and another in a 7-2 defeat to the Greater Springfield Aces on Friday. Sean Callaghan II also scored three goals throughout the weekend — one each in both of the aforementioned games as well as the lone Delaware goal in a 5-1 loss to Howard on Sunday.
U18As fall to Genesis in penalty-laden affair
Despite a 1-0 first period lead, the Jr. Blue Hens U18A team dropped a 3-1 decision to Genesis on Saturday at Gold Arena in a game that saw both teams rack up a combined 21 penalties.
Zayne MacKenzie took advantage of the first power play of the game, scoring 3:52 into the first period, but Genesis controlled the remainder of the game. Jonah Smith scored a goal and added an assist for Genesis, while Matthew Malanga recorded assists on two of their three goals.
U18AAs go 1-2-1 at Adirondack Cup
The U18AA Blue Hens earned three of a possible eight points in the Adirondack Cup, held in Malone, N.Y., despite a number of key players being absent for the tournament.
The Hens’ lone win came against Ogdensburg on Sunday. After Jack Mills and Michael Masci traded goals in the second period, Christian Kinsler potted the game-winning goal with 11:32 left in the third period off a Caleb Turner assist. The Hens battled to a 2-2 draw with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights the day before, with Kinsler and Nick Fiore accounting for the Delaware goals.
Losses to the Adirondack 46ers (4-2) and Troy-Albany Titans (5-3) completed the weekend.
